Connected
by Di-chan-chu
Summary: Sasuke wakes up one morning only to find that, tied around his finger, a red string connected him to the timid Hyuuga Hinata.
1. Chapter 1

**_An Invisible red thread connects those who are destined to meet, regardless of time, place or circumstances. The thread may stretch and tangle but it will never break._**

* * *

Sunday was the first day.

Sasuke had woken up a little later than usual, Sundays being his lazy days. He sat up in his bed, still half asleep. The sun blared through his window, making his 'only-the-bare-necessities'-room bright. With a yawn, he threw off the blankets and touched his feet to the cool wooden floor. Making his way to the bathroom, he made a mental list of what he had to do for the day: Sweep the floors (they were getting dusty), grocery shop (his fridge was empty), and do the laundry (the pile was getting higher). Thinking about what else needed to be done, he raked a hand through his hair and then he noticed it. "What the..."?

Tied around his right-hand pinky finger was a thin red string, it's other end trailing the floor and going beyond his bedroom door.

Sasuke's brow furrowed in annoyance. _Is this someone's idea of a joke_, he thought as he tried pulling on the piece of thread. It did not loop off his finger like he thought it would but it did stretch and snap back at him, hitting the back of his hand. At that little action, Sasuke's annoyance flared into anger because it was as if the string had mocked him for his futile effort. And so he stomped over to his ninja gear and grabbed a kunai. Holding his hand high and stepping on the string to keep it taut, Sasuke slashed at the red line in front of him. Sasuke's eyes widened at the sight: the kunai slid off the string, the fiber not even slightly frayed. He tried again, deciding to use a sawing motion. When that didn't work, the fuming man found himself in the kitchen trying to burn the damned thread over the stove.

The red string was still perfectly intact.

"What's this shit made out of", Sasuke growled to himself. After an hour of trying, nothing he did affected the string. Sasuke concluded that the only thing left to do was to find the person who pulled the prank in the first place. He suspected his idiot friend, Naruto. Sasuke sulked back into his bathroom to clean himself up before heading out. Standing in front of the shower, Sasuke mused about how the string would be a problem when he removed his shirt. Wouldn't it get caught and hang off of the string? He pulled the piece of clothing over his head anyway, prepared to cut off the fabric if it did get caught. To Sasuke's surprise, the shirt fazed through the thread and landed on the floor.

That was the last straw for Sasuke. He went through his morning routine at lightning speed and dashed through his apartment door out onto the street. He was going to find the person who did this to him at all costs.

* * *

Sasuke walked at a brisk pace following after the red line that trailed the ground. It was an amazing thing, the string. As Sasuke walked, its length shortened with his steps so it never bundled or snagged at his feet. To his relief, no one else seemed to notice it either. He had passed dozens of people but none had commented or even glanced at the peculiar sight. The string didn't seem to trip them either. When someone crossed its path, they simply fazed through it much like his shirt.

Sasuke picked up his pace, the string became weirder and weirder to him by the second. Was this some sort of jutsu?

The red string lead Sasuke everywhere in Konoha. He passed the outdoor market, the Hyuuga compound, the hospital, the training grounds and the Hokage Tower. Finally, Sasuke reached an apartment where the string ran under its front door and his eye twitched. The string had brought him to Sakura's place.

_Should have known_, Sasuke thought as he made his way to her door. Although Sakura no longer openly proclaimed her love for the last Uchiha like she used to, it seemed that she still had lingering feelings for the man. After the war, when Sasuke was re-enlisted as a Konoha shinobi, she once again told him of her feelings. He had rejected her, telling her that he only saw her as a comrade. Sakura expected as much, she confessed, and told him that she only wanted to hear his rejection so that she could move on. They were still friends.

"_Tch_, yeah right", grumbled Sasuke as he banged on the door. He heard scuffling footsteps before the medic revealed herself.

"Sasuke-kun", she said while standing in the doorway, her emerald eyes wide. "What are you doing here"?

Sasuke had to stop himself from scowling. "What's this about, Sakura", he gritted through his teeth, holding up his hand to her face.

"Uh...", Sakura looked at his hand then to his face and back to his hand. "Wh-what are you talking about Sasuke-kun? Is your hand hurt or..."?

He let his scowl show then. He was going to let her have it, he thought. He was going to throw a fit, yell and curse so that she would never pursue him again. "Look", he began and Sakura took that as permission to examine the hand in her face. She brought up her own hands to take hold of his. Sasuke stopped then, his mouth agape, when he saw that there was no red tied to her finger.

He was silent as Sakura was checking for injuries. His mind was still processing this new information when he heard someone call from the inside of her house. "Sakura-chan, is something wrong", the voice questioned. Looking beyond the medic, Sasuke saw the form of a girl sitting on Sakura's couch and the thread trailing the floor. The gears in his head started turning. Whoever was sitting there was the person responsible for this insane event. He rushed past Sakura and entered her apartment before she could react. Sasuke reached the living room and before he did anything, he looked at the girl's hands. She was holding a teacup but Sasuke saw it clearly.

Tied around her right-hand pinky finger was a thin red string, its other end connected to his.

Sasuke brought his eyes up to see the surprised face of Hyuuga Hinata.


	2. Chapter 2

**Thank you for all of the support, I wasn't expecting it! I hope you all enjoy this chapter too!**

* * *

Sasuke glared at the Hyuuga heiress and she stared back, albeit, like a deer in headlights.

"Care to explain this", stated Sasuke, tugging at the string. Hinata continued to stare. Normally, Sasuke wouldn't think to be so rude to the shy Hinata, she had never been an annoyance to him in the past. But he had questions with no answers. Sasuke hated not knowing things. "Well?", he barked. Hinata's pale face dusted with pink and her heart sped up.

"U-Um... Explain what, S-Sasuke-san", she asked, shrinking into Sakura's plush couch. It took everything Hinata had not to get up and run, she wasn't used to speaking to Sasuke and now the man was raising his voice at her. She was proud of herself, though, for not breaking eye contact with him. Sasuke, on the other hand, was reaching his boiling point.

"Stop playing stupid", he accused. "Get rid of this thing. Now". Sasuke pulled on the string, intending to bring her hand forward for emphasis. But Hinata's hand stayed on the teacup, the string stretching to accommodate the new length he had created. The man's brow furrowed and he pulled again. Still, the string stretched.

To Hinata and Sakura, who had entered the room long ago, Sasuke looked like a mime pulling on an invisible rope.

"_Pfft_". Sasuke looked up to see both girls covering their mouths, struggling to keep from laughing out. Realizing what kind of scene he was making, Sasuke's own face heated and colored. He cleared his throat stood straighter.

"So you're saying that you can't see it", Sasuke questioned, his voice an octave higher than it should have been. The girls looked to each other and back.

"I don't see anything", Sakura answered and crossed her arms. He looked to Hinata. She shook her head from side to side.

"I-I don't see anything either". Sasuke's face smoothed out and turned blank.

"Is that so".

He fled from Sakura's home and did not look back.

* * *

It had been two days since then and Sasuke was thankful for not seeing either kunoichi afterward, ashamed of his actions. When he went home that day, Sasuke had reflected and came to the realization that the string was not at all a big deal. In actuality, if it didn't interfere with his daily life and was invisible to others, what problem did it cause? Sasuke called this "coming to terms with it".

Well, he just ignored its existence, really.

Now, he made his way to the hokage tower after being called for a mission. It was still early in the morning, the streets empty of people, so he walked leisurely. Sasuke looked at everything but the red thread in front of him. He looked up at the graying clouds, to his right at the closed shops. He didn't dare look down at the string because, when he really thought about it, the Hyuuga girl was on the other end. It meant that he would be able to find wherever Hinata was without even trying. That ability made him feel like a stalker, which he was not.

So to say that he was upset when he did catch sight of the string was an understatement. Upon reaching the hokage tower, Sasuke had uncharacteristically tripped and stumbled. Looking down at his footing, he noticed the red line leading into the tower itself and groaned.

_Don't let her be on this mission_, he thought. Sasuke made his way through the tower to the hokage's office and his hope was crushed when he saw the thread crawl under the door. Sure enough, when Sasuke entered the room, Hinata stood in front of Tsunade's desk with Naruto on her right. He did not look at the heiress or the string when he placed himself on Naruto's opposite side.

"Good", the Fifth's voice boomed. "Now that everyone's here, let's get you briefed and out of the village by noon".

* * *

The mission was supposed to be simple, taking two days at most: scout out the base of a group of bandits near the border, determine their numbers and report back. Fighting was prohibited. With Hinata and Sasuke's doujutsu, gathering information from a distance was no problem but along the way it began to pour, slowing down the three-man team. When they finally reached the base, the sun had already set.

Using the trees and foliage as cover, they traveled in a line closer to the base, a cave behind a roaring waterfall. Hinata lead with byakugan, Naruto covered the middle, and Sasuke brought up the rear with sharingan.

"There are guards patrolling the entrance", reported Hinata. "Naruto-kun, Sasuke-san, there's a trip wire in the ground here too. Please be careful, step two feet that way when you get to this point". The rain had drowned out Hinata's soft voice, however, her warning falling on deaf ears.

"Sorry, Hinata-chan", called Naruto, "What did you-"

Too late. Naruto had tripped the wire, setting off a row of explosive tags.

"Dammit, you idiot"! Sasuke jumped into the trees, a flash of blond trailing after him.

"Sorry", apologized Naruto, his words and the look on his face didn't match. Naruto had been treating the mission as a game, he and Sasuke were the heroes of the Fourth Great Shinobi War after all. Blue eyes searched for their third member. "Hinata-chan"?

During the explosion, Hinata had jumped in the opposite direction of her teammates, exposing herself in the clearing. She was currently fighting off two guards while the other bandits raced out of the cave, alerted by the noise, and charged towards her. Hinata knew she was strong, that she became stronger, but there were a lot of enemies, around sixty, and it was going to be tough. Knocking the guards away, she let out a breath she didn't know she was holding when she saw Naruto and Sasuke join her.

"Let's do this, teme", grinned Naruto. "Small fry like this are nothing"!

Sasuke smirked, "Hn".

"T-There are still more inside the cave", Hinata corrected.

Naruto charged head first into the fray and Sasuke let the bandits come to him. The battle would have been over quickly with Naruto and Sasuke fighting. But in truth, the boys didn't like to use their new-found powers on regular shinobi, it was reserved only for opponents on par with Uchiha Madara (or each other when they got serious during spars). It wasn't hard using taijutsu, it just took a long time.

Sasuke scanned the area. Naruto made his way into the base and Hinata was off to his left. With his share of enemies dispatched, he made his way to the girl's side. Sensing his presence, Hinata turned to look at him.

"I can handle things out here", she said, her breath heavy. "You can go help Naruto-kun". Sasuke looked down at her and she gave him a small smile, her eyes full of confidence. Was this really the small, skittish girl from the academy? He was about to give Hinata a smart remark when they caught sight of a small object hurdling towards them. The bomb went off midair, sending debris in every direction and knocking away both Sasuke and Hinata. Coughing up dust, Sasuke dug himself up from the rubble.

"Shit", he choked out. "Hinata"? Looking around, he saw bodies strewn about in the dirt, the lavender of Hinata's jacket nowhere to be found.

For the first time since the start of the mission, Sasuke looked down to his right hand, to the red string around his finger. His eyes followed the path it made for him, leading his gaze to the river and down its rapids.


	3. Chapter 3

**Thank you for waiting! I don't know** **why but I had a little trouble with this one lol**

**Anyway, I hope you all enjoy!**

* * *

Sasuke darted for the river while evading the attacks of the bandits still able to fight. Zig-zagging left and right, he rushed past them, willing his legs to move his body faster. Gathering his chakra to his feet, Sasuke took one last leap for the river and landed on its unstable surface. The speed of the water increased from the rain and he had to concentrate on his chakra control more than usual. Beginning his sprint downstream, Sasuke heard his friend call after him.

"Oi! Sasuke!", yelled Naruto, emerging from behind the waterfall. "What the heck happened?! What was that noise"?!

"Bomb! Take care of things here"!

Sasuke took off, ignoring Naruto's complaint of being left behind and fixed his eyes to the red thread in front of him. What if Hinata was hurt? Or unconscious? What if he didn't make it to her in time? Sasuke's mind was racing. The rain beat down on him and the river tried to drag him under, but still he trudged on. He ran for about a mile, stopping when the red thread did not bring him any further. Looking around, Sasuke saw the red line loop in and out of jagged boulders that scattered the water at random intervals. He picked up the string and held it loosely, bringing it up from the water and easier to see. Sasuke saw its other end, a small white hand clutching a rock at the river's middle, and raced over to it.

"Hinata!", Sasuke yelled when he reached her.

"Sas-Sasuke-san"! Hinata was hugging the rock for support, her head barely above the water. The darkness of her hair blended in perfectly with the darkness of the river. If not for the string or her contrasting pale face, he probably would not have found the poor girl. Reaching into the water and finding her arm, Sasuke tried pulling her out. He froze when she cried out in pain.

"M-my foot, it's caught", Hinata gasped, spitting out the water that forced its way into her mouth when it splashed in her face.

Sasuke nodded to her and focused his chakra into his hand, gluing it to the rock she held on to. Taking a deep breath, he plunged into the water. With his free hand, Sasuke gripped Hinata's knee and moved it down her shin until he reached her ankle, finding her foot wedged in a crevice. He tried wriggling the girl free but panicked when he saw the flesh around her ankle tear slightly, red seeping out into the current. Feeling her muscles tense under his touch, he went back up to face her.

"Sorry", Sasuke began. "But I can't to get you out without pulling you under". He looked at the small girl and realized how tired she must have been. Her breath was erratic and her hands were trembling; he didn't know if it was from fear or the cold water.

"Okay", said Hinata, bringing him back from his thoughts. He looked up from her hands and locked eyes with her. Hinata gave him a look, the words _I trust you_ were unspoken but clearly heard. With that, Sasuke went under once more. When he reached her ankle, he gave her leg a light tap to warn her before he would pull her. He brought her body down completely when she responded. Gripping Hinata's leg, he moved her shin back and forth and Sasuke felt her foot loosen. Unbuckling her sandal, he tried again, feeling triumph when Hinata was finally freed. That small feeling of victory was quickly replaced with disbelief when he felt Hinata being ripped from his grasp. Did she get washed away again?

Sasuke broke through the water and searched for her form. He called out her name before hearing his own from the riverbank.

"Hey! Over here"!

Sasuke turned his head and saw blond and indigo, their bodies seated in the grass. When did Naruto get here? Jumping out of the water with surprising ease and landing next to his teammates, Sasuke voiced his question aloud.

"I just got here", Naruto answered, a shivering Hinata cradled in his arms. "I felt for your chakra in sage mode and it brought me here. I saw Hinata's hand in the water, too, and I pulled her up". His hold around the girl tightened and Sasuke noticed Hinata's spreading blush. Ignoring the sudden twinge of annoyance, Sasuke plopped down next to them. He felt tired suddenly.

"The mission?", Sasuke asked, putting his face into his hands and moving the wet hair out of his eyes.

"Oh, right"! Naruto's grin grew bigger. "We got lucky! There were Anbu patrolling close by, they heard the commotion and came to see what was goin' on. They're taking care of things now so we can head back"!

"Ah". Sasuke was growing more exhausted, going home sounded nice. "Dobe, do you have any bandages"? Naruto shook his head and before he could ask why, Sasuke tore off the sleeves of his standard shinobi uniform, leaving his arms bare, and wrung them as dry as he could. Hinata exclaimed in surprise when he took hold of her ankle and began to wrap up her injury.

"O-Oh! You didn't have to-!", she yelped and Sasuke cut her off.

"It's fine", he said as he tied the knot to his makeshift bandage. "It's not much but it's better than nothing". Looking up, Sasuke caught her gaze and held it there. He searched her face for a reaction, though he wasn't sure of what kind he was hoping for. Seconds rolled by and Naruto chose to cut the silence.

"I didn't know you were hurt, Hinata-chan! Sorry I was rough with you back there". He scratched the back of his head and looked at her with concern filling his blue eyes.

"It's okay!", Hinata started. "Y-You didn't know, so... um..." Naruto didn't listen for the end of her sentence and released his hold, turning away from her.

"We should get going. Hop on, Hinata-chan, I'll carry you!", he chirped.

After a little fuss, Hinata took her place on Naruto's back and the three took off for the village. As they were running, Sasuke glanced over to Hinata, wondering if she was okay with being jostled around by the idiot. He didn't expect to see the smile that graced her lips, her face full of contentment and her perpetual blush. Looking away, Sasuke jumped ahead of the two. He never once looked back to see if they kept up with him or not.

* * *

The rain stopped when they reached the village a little after dawn and it was decided that Sasuke would check in with the hokage while Naruto brought Hinata to the hospital. The meeting with the fifth didn't take long, Tsunade was hungover and didn't care much for the details. Sasuke was happy that the conclusion she came to after his report was that "everything was Naruto's fault". Clutching her aching head, she quickly dismissed Sasuke. He started his trek home but, along the way, Sasuke found himself not able to move from the front of the hospital. He eyed the red string that made its way inside. _It's not weird_, he thought. In order to get home, he had to pass this particular building. Hinata just so happened to still be inside. It was normal, too, to want to see how she was doing since they were on the same mission, right? With that logic, Sasuke entered the building and followed the string to her room. He held up his fist to the door, looking into the built-in window before knocking. He stopped, his hand in the air, at what he saw: Hinata sat on the edge of the bed while Naruto stood in front of her, his lips pressed to her forehead.

Taking a step back, Sasuke schooled his face into his normal indifferent look and brought his knuckles down on the door twice. He entered immediately after.

"Sasuke!", Naruto yelled, taking a full three steps back from the Hyuuga heiress. "Wh-What's up"? The look on his face was that of a child caught with a hand in the cookie jar. Sasuke stared impassively at him.

"I came to see how she was doing, dobe". He looked to Hinata.

"OH"! Her face flushed full force. "U-Um, well, it was nothing too serious", she looked down at her foot. "The b-bone, it was slightly fractured but the medic healed it up right away"! Reaching for the crutches next to her, she continued. "But it's s-still sensitive so... I-I have to... the crutches..." Hinata realized that she was beginning to ramble and she stared at her lap, letting her sentence die off. None of the three knew how long they stayed in the toxic silence that ensued but there was a collective exhale of relief when the door slid open once more.

Sakura made her way into the room, walking with purpose. She said 'good morning' to Sasuke, examined Hinata's ankle, and gave Naruto a good thwack on his head.

"You idiot! Can't you be more responsible?!", She screeched and grabbed the blond by the ear. "C'mon, Tsunade-sama told me to bring you to her for a proper punishment". Ignoring Naruto's cries of pain and protest as she exited into the hallway, Sakura called from door to Hinata. "You're all set, too. Feel free to head home when you want"! She flashed a beautiful smile to the injured girl before closing the door. The two people left in the room blinked at the fast progression of the situation, listening to their friends' receding footsteps.

When the clacking of sandals against the floor was no longer audible, the stillness returned. Not knowing what to say, Hinata began to fidget. All she wanted to do was get home and go to bed. She wondered if she should just tell the stoic Uchiha goodbye and leave it at that. Hinata place a hand on her cheek in thought. _Would that seem rude?_ Running scenarios through her mind, Hinata jumped when she heard the voice of the man she was thinking about.

"I'll walk you back", he said and she looked up at him, unmoving. Sasuke stuffed his hands into his pockets. "Well? Are you ready"?

"Thank you but I don't want to bother you", replied Hinata, slightly stunned at the offer. "I can make it back on my own". To prove her point, she stood and placed the crutches under her arms. Hinata hobbled to the door and Sasuke slid it open for her.

"I have to pass the Hyuuga compound to get home. Might as well walk together".

"O-Oh, I didn't know that", she said as they entered the hall. "Then, um, I'll be in your care, Sasuke-san". They made their way through the hospital in a more tolerable quietness, neither person finding it necessary to converse. When they passed through the building's entrance, Sasuke found something to say.

"You don't have to use an honorific", he said. "I call you just by 'Hinata' so it's fine for you to do the same".

"I d-don't really mind it", she looked up at him. "Unless you wanted me to"? Sasuke raised an eyebrow at her.

"I wouldn't have suggested it if I didn't".

"Ah", Hinata agreed. "Okay then. Sasuke..." She hesitated, feeling a little uncomfortable, and blurted out a "-kun" after his name. Hinata brought a hand to her mouth to cover her laugh, a sweet ringing sound, when Sasuke scrunched up his face at the alteration.

"I-I'm sorry", she said with a small smile. "It'll take a little getting used to; I hope you don't mind me using 'Sasuke-kun' for now". Hiding a little smile himself, he gave her a 'Hn' and she giggled again. They continued their slow pace through the hospital's courtyard and Sasuke noted how he liked the sound of her quiet laugh. He thought it suited her, 'Hinata' meaning 'a sunny place' and all, it reminded him of a windchime during summer. He wanted to hear it again but the idea was quickly erased from his mind when, upon reaching the gates of the hospital, a giant ball of white covered Hinata.

"Akamaru-kun!", she squeaked, trying to keep her balance. The dog gave her a _woof!_ in response. Hinata and Sasuke looked up from the animal when they heard Kiba's voice coming towards them.

"Hey, Hinata!", he called while running up to them, Shino a few steps behind. The two men gave a quick nod to the Uchiha and then put all of their focus to their teammate. Kiba did all the talking.

"We ran into Naruto at Tsunade's office and heard what happened! Besides your foot, you're okay now, right"? He looked her up and down and Hinata smiled at the other members of Team Kurenai.

"I'm fine. Before anything serious happened, I was saved by S- Oh"! She turned to the man at her side, shock plastered on her face. "I-I'm sorry!", she exclaimed. "I didn't thank you yet, did I"? Sasuke tried not to smirk at her flustered state.

"Don't worry about it", was all he said.

Before she could break out into a string of apologies, Kiba grabbed her by the waist and dropped her down atop Akamaru's back. Shino reached over silently and took her crutches.

"Well then, we'll walk her back now", Kiba said to Sasuke. "See ya". He turned to leave, leading the dog into a steady trot while Shino shadowed after them. Hinata looked over her shoulder, the distance from Sasuke growing.

"Sorry", she said to him, raising her voice a little so he would be able to hear her. "Goodbye, Sasuke-san- Sasuke-kun"!

He watched the three, technically four, turn the corner and disappear. Standing at the gates, Sasuke let the gap between them widen. Having to go in the same direction, he didn't want it to look like he was following them. While he waited, Sasuke looked at the red string on the ground out of boredom and his eyes followed the path Hinata had made with it.

_Huh._ "When did it get tangled"?


	4. Chapter 4

**_I'm sorry that this one took a little longer than the others! I picked up some extra hours at my part-time so I've been super busy ._**

**_Anyway, I hope you guys enjoy!_**

* * *

It was still early, not yet noon, but the sun was already blaring down on Konoha. A cool breeze cut through the air, rustling the trees, and fluffy clouds gave shade here and there, making the heat tolerable. The sounds of singing birds melded together with the chatter of people on the street who decided to go out and enjoy the weather. It was a beautiful day, no doubt, but Uchiha Sasuke felt absolutely disgusted about it. He holed himself up in his room, under the covers and tried to ignore it all. For the past few days after he was running through the rain and diving in dangerous river currents, Sasuke was suffering in the comfort of his bed. Everything was hurting him: head, throat, muscles; his nose was stuffy and dripping at the same time too. Sasuke didn't dare say it out loud, the fact that he was sick, because only fools caught colds in summer.

Sasuke's irritation was increasing and he kicked off the blanket covering his now overheated body to the floor. This was the fourth day since his health had declined and not being able to go out and move made him restless. Sasuke didn't like to sit down for long periods of time because, if he did, his mind would wander. He would think about the past, of Itachi and his family, or his time outside of the village and how easily Konoha had accepted him back. Sasuke knew that he was different now, better in both body and mind, so he did not let the emotions that the memories brought along bother him anymore. But that didn't mean that he _liked_ thinking about them. Rolling over onto his stomach, Sasuke took hold of the red string around his finger as a distraction. It became a habit to play with the string, pulling and stretching it or twisting it into unidentifiable shapes when he became bored at home. He'd try to untangle the knot that had formed as well but it never loosened. Sasuke was twirling the string around his other fingers when he heard a banging on his front door and he sighed. Only one person knocked on his door that obnoxiously.

"Oiii, Saaaaasukeee," Naruto's voice called, the 'knocking' continuing. Pulling the discarded blanket back up to hide under, Sasuke ignored his friend. Whether he moved to greet him or not, it didn't matter, Naruto would find a way to get inside of the apartment somehow. And sure enough, after the noise had stopped and everything went quiet, Sasuke heard a crash from his kitchen followed by curse. A few minutes passed before the blond finally showed himself, standing in the open doorway to Sasuke's room with a big smile plastered on his face.

"Hey, feeling better?" he said. When Sasuke buried himself deeper into the blankets, covering his head, Naruto laughed and carried on, walking further into the room. "By the way, I think your coffee maker's broken. You shouldn't have left it next to the window, you know, because, uhh, the rain! Yeah, the rain might've broke it. Or something."

"I don't leave the window open when it rains, dobe," was Sasuke's muffled reply.

"Anyway, I brought you something to eat," Naruto said, changing the subject. The image of a greasy bowl of miso pork ramen came to Sasuke's mind and his stomach churned. Sitting up to decline the offer, Sasuke was surprised to see the medic nin of their team standing behind Naruto. He was even more surprised when the Hyuuga heiress appeared in the doorway giving a slight bow, an apology for the intrusion, when their eyes met. He had to tear his gaze away from her when he heard Sakura add on to Naruto's statement.

"Technically, we still have to cook it," she said, holding up the plastic bag in her hand. From what Sasuke saw through the sheer material, the bag held some... _interesting_ looking ingredients. "Just you guys wait, me and Hinata are gonna make some really delicious food!" The smile Sakura had on her face should have been reassuring, it really should have, but gleam in her bright green eyes filled him full of doubt he didn't voice until the girls were out of the room.

"Are you sure we can trust their food?" Sasuke asked, turning to his friend who now sat cross-legged at the end of his bed across from him. The two boys flinched at the sudden sound of banging pots and pans coming from down the hall. Naruto gave a small, nervous smile and scratched the back of his head.

"I'm sure we'll be fine... though I never had something Sakura-chan made before..."

"That's not helpful," Sasuke deadpanned.

"Oh!" Naruto exclaimed, his eyes growing wide. He moved his hand to cover his stomach, drool escaping his lips. "But Hinata-chan's a great cook, like, amazing! One time, she made these riceballs that looked like me and they were really good! I never knew something as plain as rice could be so-"

"Hey."

Naruto closed his mouth, surprise from the interruption written on his face. On the other hand, Sasuke tried his best to look nonchalant by sitting back against the bed's headboard, his elbows resting on his bent knees.

"What's going on between you two?" he asked. Naruto turned away while red colored his ears.

"Uh, w-what do you mean?" answered Naruto, looking through the window at nothing in particular. He was starting to fidget and Sasuke gave a sigh. He stated a single word, '_hospital_', and watched as the blond snapped his head to his direction, the red spreading to the rest of his face. Sasuke grabbed a tissue to wipe his dripping nose and waited for Naruto to regain his composure. When he did, he recounted the story of Hinata's confession during Pain's attack on Konoha, the resolve she gave him during the war, and how he only now had the chance to talk to her about all of it. "I like Hinata, she's sweet. So we, um, decided to try it... out..." Naruto pulled the collar of his jacket up to cover his heated face, muffling the rest of his sentence.

He continued mumbling about dates and how he didn't actually know what couples did together while Sasuke only half-listened. He kept his eyes on Naruto but his left hand had found its way to his right, covering it, and his fingers absent-mindedly brushed against the little bow tied around his pinky. Naruto's face reappeared from behind the cloth.

"Ah, but you're the only one who knows so... could you keep it a secret?" Naruto pleaded and the response he got was one he wasn't expecting. Honestly, Sasuke wasn't expecting it either but the sentence moved its way up his sore throat and left his lips before he actually realized it.

"Do you think it'll last?"

There was a string of different emotions that flashed across Naruto's features but the one that had settled and stayed was one that Sasuke couldn't identify. Yellow brows furrowed together, his lips tightened into a straight line and his eyes seemed to almost darken into a deeper shade of blue.

"I... don't know." Naruto crossed his arms and added, "I really do like her but to be honest, I don't think she's the one I'm going to end up with." His shoulders slumped and he smiled weakly. "It's like my string of fate is leading me to someone else."

"What?" Sasuke sat forward, his complete attention on Naruto. "What do you mean by that?"

"Huh? It's just a phrase, man," Naruto smiled in confusion. "You know, the invisible string connected to your destined person and all that. Even if you're not into love and stuff, you gotta know about that at least, right?"

Sasuke grit his teeth, "Of course I know, stupid." After all, he was experiencing it first hand at the moment. "What I mean is-" he stopped himself and huffed. "You know what? Forget it."

Naruto's smile widened. It wasn't often that he and Sasuke spoke about things like love, he was enjoying the different conversation topic. He became annoyed when his stoic friend did not finish the sentence no matter how much he urged and the talk quickly turned into a fight of wrestling. Sasuke, at a disadvantage due to his health, was in the middle of a headlock when they heard Sakura's loud and cheery voice call them to lunch.

* * *

The four sat at the table placed in the middle of Sasuke's kitchen, the dishes of steaming food laid out neatly in front of them. There were plates of rolled omelet, tempura vegetables, and fresh salad surrounding a hot pot of soup but Sasuke's eyes roamed the area around him instead. He had never seen his kitchen so _used_ before and could only imagine how long it would take to clean. The stove had caked on food next to its burners, the sink was piled high with pots and pans, and the counter was cluttered with cooking utensils he didn't even know he had. Sasuke wasn't a neat freak or anything but he was sure that it would take him hours to get it back to looking decent at best. Nervous glances passed between him and Naruto when Sakura started to portion out the servings of food.

"Okay!" she began. " So, I made the rice porridge and Hinata made the side dishes!" Sakura beamed, proud of her work, as she placed a small bowl of the soup in front of each person. "I threw some extras into the porridge to help you get better quickly so you have to eat everything, alright, Sasuke-kun?"

Feeling everyone's eyes on him, waiting for him to take the first bite, Sasuke shifted in his seat and stared down at the steaming concoction in front of him. He picked up his spoon and dipped it into the bowl, giving it a tentative stir. It _looked_ normal, he gave her that, except for the floating bits of what looked like small twigs. Lifting the spoonful of the thick soup to his lips, he met everyone's anticipated stares before placing it in his mouth. They watched as Sasuke's face turned blank and he struggled to swallow, placing the spoon down on the table in the process. When it seemed like he had managed to get the food down, Sakura spoke up.

"Is it good..?"

"I'm almost disappointed," Sasuke said and her smile wavered. When Hinata looked to Sakura with a worried expression and Naruto opened his mouth to scold him for sounding rude, he continued. "It must be because my nose is stuffed but I can't taste anything." The three stopped and turned to him, his face still vacant. There was a moment of silence before a round of laughter erupted.

"You had us scared for no reason, teme!"

"All of our hard work for the patient is wasted, Hinata!"

"H-How anti-climatic..!"

The laughter settled and they caught their breath, ready to dig in to their meal. Naruto fought against Sakura for the tastiest looking parts of the side dishes while Hinata quietly slurped her porridge and watched, a smile on her lips between bites. Sasuke guessed that, from the way the food was eaten, their lunch really did taste fine and he thought it was a shame that he couldn't taste Hinata's 'amazing cooking'. He tried a piece of omelet anyway and the texture itself was bliss; he didn't know eggs could be so light and fluffy. Sasuke decided that he definitely had to have her cook for him again when his sense of taste came back and the four all but licked the plates clean in a matter of minutes. They sat in contentment, too full to move right away, and made small talk about the food, the weather, and how Sasuke got sick from the last mission.

"Ah!" Sakura stood up and faced Naruto. "Mission! Naruto we have to leave now or we'll be behind schedule!" Realization dawned on Naruto and he shot up from his seat as well, almost knocking back the chair.

"I forgot!" he cried, looking ready to leave.

Hinata tilted her head to one side and focused on the flustered Sakura, "You two have a mission, today?"

"Suna requested me," answered the medic. She wrung her hands together and explained, "I have to go for a joint mission with Temari-san and Naruto-"

"I wanna see Gaara!" Naruto buzzed with excitement.

Sakura rolled her eyes, "Yeah. So, um..." She looked down at mess on the table, then around to the counters behind her. Even turned away from him, Sakura knew what kind of look Sasuke had on his face; she felt his passive-aggressive glare on the back of her head that let her know she couldn't just up and leave without cleaning up. She had already resigned and accepted that she would be late when Hinata joined the two in standing.

"I-I can take care of things here," she said, already picking up the plates. "It wouldn't look good if you were late for a mission with our allies."

"Are you sure?" Sakura asked in astonishment. She was sure Hinata, being as shy as she was, would look a little more uncomfortable at the thought of being alone with Uchina Sasuke than she actually did.

Her pale eyes softened and she smiled in assurance. "I-It was my idea to cook anyway. Go ahead, they need you right?"

"I'm sorry, Hinata!" Sakura said and pulled the girl into a hug. "Thanks, I owe you, ok?" She let go and ran to the exit, grabbing Naruto's arm in the process. "Bye, Sasuke-kun!"

Naruto matched his pace to Sakura's and called back, "See you guys!"

The front door slammed shut and for the second time that week, Sasuke found himself alone with the quiet heiress. He watched Hinata busy herself with the dishes in the sink, her back to him. Sitting at the table still, Sasuke wondered why she seemed so relaxed being alone with him in his house. Looking to the thread that hovered in the air between them, he also questioned how she was his 'destined person'. He was nothing like Naruto, the person who currently held her heart. Being the polar opposite of the blond, would she really make a drastic switch and choose him after everything was said and done? Sasuke didn't know if that was really possible. He was deep in thought when Hinata broke the silence around them.

"H-How are you feeling?" she asked, still washing the dirty plates.

Sasuke blinked. How long had he been staring at her? Collecting himself, he answered her with one word, "Tired." Being around his energetic teammates always wore him out.

"Oh. Then, y-you don't have to keep me company or anything," Hinata said timidly. Placing a clean dish with the others on the drying rack, she continued. "You should go lie down."

Sasuke stood, deciding to follow her advice. He was almost of out the kitchen when he turned back to voice a question. "It was your idea to make lunch for me?"

Hinata wiped her hands on a towel and moved to tackle the mess on the stove, answering his question along the way. "It's my thanks to you," she smiled, "For saving me. I-I'm sorry it's not much, it was all I could think of."

"No, it was fine," Sasuke started, shoving his hands into the pockets of his sweatpants. "I couldn't really taste it but it... felt... good? Uh, no, what I mean is that the, uh, _texture_ was... you know." Sasuke tried to find the right words and Hinata tried to keep a straight face. When her lips started to quiver, she turned away and Sasuke left for the living room across the hall. "Nevermind."

He dropped on to the couch, wanting the piece of furniture to swallow him whole. How is it that, as a person who didn't care what others thought about him, he always seemed to feel embarassed when that girl was around? Since there were no actual walls separating the two rooms, he heard Hinata respond to his earlier babbling.

"I-I understand what you mean," she giggled. "I'm glad you liked it."

Sasuke didn't reply. He settled into the couch, slinging an arm along its top and throwing his head back to rest against the cushioning. Listening to the rhythmic sound of scrubbing coming from the kitchen, Sasuke closed his eyes; he didn't know when he fell asleep.

* * *

Sasuke was half-awake when he felt a cool hand brush away his bangs and rest on his forehead. Instead of feeling wary of the person who invaded his personal space, Sasuke was overcome with a feeling of comfort. He reached up to grab the foreign body part, opening his eyes to see a startled Hyuuga Hinata standing in front of him.

"I-I sorry!" she exclaimed, her face flaming. "I-I didn't mean to wake you!" She tried to pull her hand out of his grip but only managed to move it to the space between them when Sasuke tightened his hold.

"What were you doing?" he asked with half-lidded eyes, still trying to fully wake up.

"I-I just! I wanted to check your temperature," she explained. "Y-You didn't budge when I tried to wake you, I thought your fever might've gotten worse."

"Hn." Instead of releasing her like she thought he would, Sasuke brought her hand back to his face, her palm flat against his hot cheek. "Your hands are cold," he murmured, "It's nice."

"Sas-Sasuke-san?" _It's not that my hands are cold, you're just too warm!_ Hinata watched him take hold of her other hand and place it on his other cheek. This was too much for her. "I-I mean, Sasuke-kun, um, when did you last take some medicine?"

He looked up at her, "I don't have any."

Hinata tore her hands away from him in shock, "None at all?!" Sasuke tried to shake his head 'no' but ended up swaying his torso back and forth dizzyingly. "This is bad... S-Stay right there, Sasuke-kun," she said over her shoulder as she made her way to the door. "I'll be right back!"

Sasuke listened to her shuffling footsteps and when he heard the front door open and close, he fell onto his side to fully lay down across the couch. He was finally alone but the only thing he could think about was when Hinata would return, wanting nothing more than to have her hands on him again. Shoving his face into the armrest, Sasuke fell asleep once more, thinking about her.


End file.
